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The World-Series-or-bust Chicago White Sox are now a solid 1-3-3 after crunching the division-rival Clevelanders. Yes, the win is just as meaningless as all those losses and ties, but isn’t it a much nicer meaninglessness?
It wasn’t just a win, either. A whole lot of things looked good in the process.
First and foremost, it may be time to give new pitching coach Ethan Katz a couple of loaves and a fish or two and gather a multitude to see how far the chow goes, because maybe he really is a miracle worker. Somehow, he got Reynaldo López to the point of six-up-six-down-and-a-strikeout for two innings.
Reynaldo Lopez, from stretch, retired Indians in order in first two innings. pic.twitter.com/UjjsHpQR7x
— Daryl Van Schouwen (@CST_soxvan) March 6, 2021
Garrett Crochet followed with a one-single inning, Bernardo Flores Jr. went three scoreless (though somewhat awkwardly), and even Matt Tomshaw managed a scoreless inning.
Meanwhile, the Sox offense ended its two-game slumber, thanks in part to Terry Francona’s decision to start minor league lefty Scott Moss, who already had a lousy spring start, and follow him with another lefty, Sam Hentges, whose tiny sip of Major League espresso came with a bitter double-figure ERA. Maybe Francona was trying to see if that 14-0 Sox record against southpaws last year was just a statistical freak.
The Sox got on top in the first, on a Luis Robert single, Adam Eaton lost-in-the-sun RBI double and Andrew Vaughn double-play grounder that scored Eaton. The blast that opened up the game came in the third, when Yermín Mercedes came up with the bases loaded and made a plea to be kept on as DH.
Mercedes’ inning-ending 3-run double. pic.twitter.com/GNdem2cpBj
— Daryl Van Schouwen (@CST_soxvan) March 6, 2021
Leury García finished off the scoring with a two-run homer to left-center in the fifth, keeping up his multi-year habit of spring power surprises. Robert, Eaton and Leury each ended up with two of Chicago’s nine hits.
The Sox host the Rockies tomorrow, with coverage on mlb.tv and radio on ESPN 1000. Game time is 2:05 p.m. Central, with Hannah LaMotta making her SSS recap debut and supplemental on-site coverage from Sean Williams.
Poll
Who was the White Sox MVP of Saturday’s 7-0 pasting of Cleveland?
This poll is closed
-
2%
Adam Eaton: 2-for-3, 2 R, RBI, K, 2B
(4 votes) -
33%
Leury García: 2-for-2, 2 RBI, BB, HR, 2 2-out RBI
(47 votes) -
28%
Reynaldo López: 2 IP, K
(40 votes) -
25%
Yermín Mercedes: 1-for-3, 3 RBI, 3 2-out RBI
(35 votes) -
9%
Luis Robert: 2-for-3, 2 R, K, 2B
(13 votes)
Poll
Which sport will next find its way into SSS comments?
This poll is closed
-
12%
Auto Racing
(6 votes) -
12%
Badminton
(6 votes) -
8%
Billiards
(4 votes) -
2%
Fútbol
(1 vote) -
2%
Handball
(1 vote) -
12%
Horse Racing
(6 votes) -
33%
Putt-Putt Golf
(16 votes) -
10%
Soccer
(5 votes) -
6%
Tennis
(3 votes)